The Social Media Law Firm Newsfeed

Security breaches have become more and more common. While companies are struggling how to protect and manage their digital information in the cloud, the International Chamber of Commerce turned to Ethan for best practices in its Commercial Crime International’s October 2016 issue. Therein, Ethan provides insight into how companies should be managing their digital information: […]

Employers commonly insert a “savings clause” at the beginning or end of their social media policy. Such a clause states that no rule in the policy is intended to prohibit protected activity. For example: “This policy is not to be interpreted so as to interfere with employee rights to self-organize, form, join, or to engage […]

A social media policy that prohibits “negative statements about the company, managers, or employees” would likely be found unlawful under the National Labor Relations Act because it would be considered vague and ambiguous with additional context. So what can you do? A social media policy can prohibit the use of racial or ethnic slurs; […]

What is “good for the goose” is generally “good for the gander.” If the National Labor Relations Board has upheld a provision of a social media policy, then you should consider tailoring that provision for the employer’s own social media policy. You should be mindful, however, that because there is no one-size-fits-all work rule […]

Employees have the right to discuss the terms and conditions of their employment, but they have no protected right to disclose trade secrets. But if your policy simply prohibits the “disclosure of confidential information,” you may run afoul with the National Labor Relations Act. The reason this clause is problematic is that it remains unclear […]

Every business must protect their right to identify who can speak on behalf of the company. But you cannot restrict employee speech by instituting a vague prohibition that might interfere with employee fundamental rights. On the one hand, your social media policy should specify who within the organization has the authority to represent the […]

Between 2008 and 2015, the percentage of the U.S. population that has at least one social media account rose from 24 percent to 73 percent. This popularity, and the billions upon billions of dollars that accompany it, has facilitated the need for legislation and ethical debate around the proper use of social networking. Attorney […]

The push and pull of social media monitoring is a difficult one to manage. As an HR manager, your relationship with an employee or a prospective employee’s social media profile must have the right amount of intimacy and distance. But how do you find the balance between being a laid back, carefree manager and […]

Be careful what you say. That’s been good advice since people began communicating with language. The most modern evolution — be careful what you post on the Internet — was confirmed last week by the 4th District Court of Appeal. The court on Wednesday upheld a decision by the Circuit Court in Broward County that […]

Although demand for social media-related legal counsel is growing exponentially and has piqued some BigLaw interest, the practice area remains largely dominated by midsize law firms and boutiques, including one newcomer that claims to be the world’s first dedicated solely to social media legal issues. It is largely boutiques and BigLaw outsiders — and now […]

Don’t think an employee social media policy and training in necessary? Think Again. A South African real estate agent’s racist comment recently went viral, causing a wave of angry responses calling for the agent to be fired and vacate the country. The public backlash extended not only to the real estate agent, but also its […]

Of course we want to monitor our employees social media use. But we cannot monitor them in a way that may violate the law or your employees’ rights. If your jurisdiction allows you to monitor employees’ online activities, then your social media policy should advise its employees accordingly. The policy should state that all […]

Some employers will copy and paste someone else’s social media policy to save time and money. That’s a big mistake. Why? Because there’s no “one size fits all” social media policy has been created. You should tailor your policy to the specific needs of your company. In addition to addressing activity under the National […]

Employees have a right under federal law to utilize the company name and logo while engaging in protected concerted activity, such as on electronic or paper leaflets, cartoons, or picket signs in connection with a protest involving the terms and conditions of employment. Thus, a rule within a social media policy that prohibits employees […]

Your intellectual property sets your company apart from its competitors. Your name, logo, website, marketing materials, and business strategy are therefore amongst your valuable most assets. But are they protected from social media legal risks? Startups, websites, and applications are being created faster than any time in history. These new competitors are looking to find […]

Some employer’s initial reaction is to implement a broad policy that could cover any potential negative or harmful social media posts. But this could be a big mistake. Overly restricting employee use of social media could not only decrease employee morale, but also could get the employer in “hot water” with the National Labor […]

A social media policy may be unenforceable if it is difficult to determine what speech is allowed versus what speech is prohibited. Here’s how you can provide clarity through context: A work rule’s context provides the key to determining the “reasonableness” of a particular rule’s construction. Rules that clarify and restrict their scope by […]

Your social media policy may not be enforceable if it is not understood. Here are tips to ensure your employees understand what speech is prohibited under the policy. Define Key Concepts A trusted method to avoid ambiguity in interpreting work rules within a social media policy is to provide definitions of key terms — […]

Employers must draft clear and specific rules that are not open to interpretation. A plain reading of each work rule should leave employees with no confusion over the permissible and prohibited use of social media. Employers commonly run afoul of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) by incorporating general, broad, or vague prohibitions against certain […]

A social media policy should begin with a statement of the goals that the company is working to achieve through the use of online technologies and social media. One primary goal of the policy should be to provide employees with a clear understanding of their right to use social media, while also providing specific guidelines […]

Law360recently interviewed me about my decision to dedicate a law practice exclusively to provide solutions to social media legal issues. Here’s a small preview from their story: Although demand for social media related legal counsel is growing exponentially and has piqued some BigLaw interest, the practice area remains largely dominated by midsize law firms and […]

A social media policy should provide employees with a clear understanding of what constitutes appropriate, acceptable, and lawful business behavior. It should specify what type of content, language, and behavior is considered appropriate, versus that which is deemed offensive and therefore prohibited. Clear, comprehensive, strategically written policies also will help your company demonstrate to […]

A financial institution’s social media engagement can not only attract new customers and increase community engagement, but it can also create exposure to serious legal risks. Without implementing a social media risk management program, financial institutions can experience compliance and legal risk that can result in lawsuits, regulatory investigations audits, and enforcement actions. This can […]

Consumers spend time on Facebook than any other website on the planet. More than Google. More than Yahoo! It therefore follows that we should be engaging consumers by promoting our products and services on social media. It’s no secret that by engaging consumers through social media promotions, we can grow our social influence and reach, […]

My grandfather once told me that everything good in life could also be bad. That there are two sides to every coin. And how it all depends on your perspective. Okay, I just made that up. My grandfather mostly talked about how in his day, he had to walk to school, barefoot, in the snow, […]

Social media is destroying the legal system. It is tearing at the fabric of our laws. Manipulating our fundamental rights. And eroding our justice system. In five years it will cause the downfall of society, trigger the apocalypse, and set forth a series of catastrophic events that will destroy our planet. Okay, maybe that was […]